On Monday December 29, 2014 the Attorney General issued an order for Khaled Al-Qazzaz’s release. This means that his case file has been closed and no charges will be proffered. After 18 months, Khaled and his family were extremely elated and grateful for this news.

Khaled’s legal team in Egypt has been working diligently with local authorities to effect his release and have successfully processed all necessary release paperwork. It has been 8 days since the release order was issued, and while the family has been advised that a release normally occurs within 2 to 3 days, they remain optimistic that formalities will be rapidly concluded and Khaled’s detention will soon come to a close.

We remain very troubled about Khaled’s health. He is due for a number of medical operations to address his deteriorating health conditions caused by the period spent in solitary confinement. Yesterday Khaled completed his first surgery and he is currently recovering. With the news of his release, the hope is for subsequent operations to take place in a hospital of his choice with Canadian standards of care.

We are grateful to all those working towards Khaled's immediate release and acknowledge the efforts of those working to expedite the processing of this humanitarian case so that Khaled can finally come home to his wife and children in Canada.

“My children and I are very happy and excited. We hope that Khaled will be with us soon, get the medical care he needs, and put his life back together,” says Sarah Attia, his Canadian-born wife.

On July 3, 2013, the Egyptian military forcibly and illegally detained Khaled Al-Qazzaz, a Canadian-educated mechanical engineer, human rights activist and former school principal. His Toronto-born wife, Sarah Attia, has been raising awareness about his situation with the hopes of bringing him back home to her and their four children.